Quadruplex telegraph



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1. H. O. NICHOLSON.

QUADRUPLEX TELEGRAPH. No. 249,080. Patented Nev. 1,1881.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sneet 2.

H. O. NICHOLSON.

QUADRUPLEX TELEGRAPH.

No. 249,080. Patented N0v.1,1881

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N. PETERS. Plwlfl-Lvlhngmpher. \Vdzhington. 11c.

(No Model.)

H.-O. NICHOLSON.

QUADRUPLEX TELEGRAPH.

Patented Nov. 1, 1881.

3 Sheets-Sheet '3.

UNrren STATES PATENT @rrrcn.

HENRY O. NICHOLSON, OE KENTON, KENTUCKY.

QUADRUPLEX TELEGRAPH.

SPECIFICATION forming" part of Letters Patent No. 249,080, datedNovember 1, 1881.

Application-filed August 29, 1881. (No model.)

T 0 all whom it may concern:

.Be it known that I, HENRY G. NICHOLSON, a citizen of theUnited Statesof America,residing at Kenton, in the county of Kenton and State ofKentucky, have invented certain new and useful-Improvements inTelegraphs; and Ido hereby declare the following to bea full, c1ear,andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, referencebeinghad to-the accompanying drawings, and to letters or figures ofreference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates totelegraphs adapted for the simultaneoustransmission of more than one message over a single main-line wire.

The particular novel feature hereinafter described and claimed covers apart of my invention described in my application for United StatesLetters Patent filed May 11,A.D.1876, which is now in interference withanother pending application, and from which this part has been withdrawnunder the existing rules of practice in the United States Patent Office.

The particular part of my invention now under consideration consists ofthe combination at one station of a single main-line and two locallyindependent main-line relays adapted to independently and simultaneouslyreceive each aseparate and distinct signal or message.

In order that my invention may be clearly understood I have illustratedin the annexed drawings and will proceed to describe the forms thereofset forth in my aforesaid application.

Figure 1 is a diagram of a duplex telegraph in which part of battery isnormally and constantly in circuit.

Electro-motive force for producing the different line -currents used insimultaneously transmitting two messages or signals from station I tostation His obtained from the two main-line batteries or two sections ofbattery M B and M B at station I, which are controlled by thetransmitters T and T, inde pendently operated by ordinary finger-keys, Kand K, through-the intervention of local batteries, and electro magnet-sO and D, of which the transmitters form the armature-levers,- beingprovided with the usual retractile springs,

t and t. The lever-arm of transinitterTis constructed with a singlehook, a, and single insulated contact-spring a, and plays between theback-stop (Hand the contact-screw a electrically connected to thesupporting-post. The lever-arm of transmitter T is constructed with twohooks, b and b, and two insulated contactsprings, b and b and playsbetween the electrically-connected contact-screws I) and 12 Themain-line batteries and transmitters are connected up as follows: Thepositive pole of battery M B is connected by wire 1 with the negativepole of battery M B. The negative pole of battery M B is connected bywire 2 with the supporting-post of the contact-screw a of transmitter T.The positive pole of battery M B is connected by wire 3 with thelever-arm of transmitter T. Wire 1 is connected by wvire 4. with thelever-arm of the transmitter T. Insulated contact-spring a oftransmitter T is connected by wire 5 with the supporting-post ofcontact-screws b and If of transmitter T. Line L is connected toinsulated contact-spring I) of transmitter T, and insulated contactspring 1) thereof is connected with the earth by wire 6. Under thisarrangement the currents play as follows: When both finger-keys areopen, and consequently both transmitters at rest, battery M B is alonein circuit, and a current from the positive pole thereof traverses theline to the distant station. When finger-key K is closed, in consequenceof which transmitter T is attracted by its electro-magnet D, batteryM Bremains alone in circuit, but now the current flows from its positivepole to earth, and returns from the distant station, thus traversing theline in the opposite direction. In other words, the operation oftransmitter T reverses the fiow of the line-current. When finger-key Kis closed, in consequence of which transmitter T is attracted by itselectro-magnet G, battery M B is also put in circuit, so as to additsforce to that of battery M B and increase the strength of the currentalready on line without changing the direction of its flow. When bothfinger-keys are closed, in consequence of which both transmitters areattracted by their respective eleetro-magnets, both batteries M B and MB send ajoint current, as when transmitter T alone is attractedby itsmagnet, but

in the opposite direction. Thus transmitter T solely changes thestrength of the current, and transmitter T solely changes the polarityor the direction of the flow of the current; hence 5 operator atfinger-key K transmits his signals or message by changes in the polarityof the current, while the operator at finger-key K transmits his signalsor message by changes in the strength of the current. It is deemed ounnecessary to detail the paths of the currents under the difl'erentpositions of the transmitters, as they may be readily traced by any oneskilled in the art. At the distant station [I a polarized relay, P R,and an ordinary Morse 5 or neutral relay, M R, are connected to the lineL. The polarized relay responds to changes in the polarity of theline-currents (irrespective of their strength) effected by the operationof transmitter T. The neutral relay responds to changes in the strengthof the line-currents (irrespective of their polarity) effected by theoperation of transmitter T, the tension of the retractile spring of saidneutral relay being properly adjusted to overbalance the magnetic forcethereof due to a .current from battery M B alone, and to allow the relayto respond only to the joint current from the combined batteries M B andM B.

Fig. 2 illustrates a modification in the transo initting devices,according to which there is normally no battery in circuit. In this casethe battery M B is stronger than the battery M B, so that battery M Balone may furnish a current of sufficient strength to operate the 5neutral relay,the tension ofthe retractilespring of which is, however,again adjusted to over-balance the magnetic force thereof due to acurrent from battery M B alone. The transmit ters are constructed andoperated the same as o the transmitters of Fig. 1,except that thecontact screw 1) of transmitter T is insulated. The line L is connectedto this insulated contact-screw I); and the lever-arm of transmitter Tis connected by wire 7 to the earth. The 5 negative pole of battery M Bis connected by wire 8 to the line L, while its positive pole isconnected by wire 9 with the contact-screw I) throughthesupporting-postthereof. Thenegative pole of battery M B is connectedby wire 3 10 with the supporting-post of the contactscrew a oftransmitter T. The positive pole of battery M B is connected by wire 11with contact-spring I) of transmitter T, and the contact-spring 1)thereof is connected by wire 5 12 with the contact-spring a oftransmitter T. The lever-arm of transmitter T is connected by wire 13with wire 11. Under this arrangement there is normally no current online. WVhen finger-key K is closed, in consequence of which transmitterT is attracted by its electro-magnet D, battery M B alone is put incircuit with its negative pole to line. When tinger-keyK is closed, inconsequence of which transmitter T is attracted by its electro-mag- 5net 0, battery M B is put in circuit with its,

positive pole to line.

When both fin ger-keys are closed,in consequence of which bothtransmitters are attracted by their respective magnets, the poles ofbattery M B are transposed by transmitter T, and it is joined bytransmitter T to battery M B, so that the joined batteries are put incircuit with their negative pole to line. The relays at thereceiving-station II are the same, and connected up as in Fig. 1. Thecurrents sent by transmitter T alone operate the polar relay P R, thecurrents sent by transmitter T alone operate the Morse or neutral relayM R, and the currents sent by the simultaneous action of bothtransmitters T and T operate both relays P R and M R.

Fig.3illustrates a quadruplex' telegraph embodying still another form ofthispart of my invention. The batteries and transmitters at therespective stations I and II are arranged and connected up precisely thesame as in the duplex telegraph, (illustrated in Fig. 1,) the parts atone station being, however, arranged reversely to the same parts at theother station, while the polarized relay at one station responds tocurrents of positive polarity and the polarized relay at the otherstation to currents of negative polarity. Parts at station I are markedlike the same parts at station I of Fig. l, and the corresponding partsat station II are similarly marked. The relays P R and M R at station I1correspond to the relays at station II of Fig. 1; but they are, like therelays P R and M R at station I, so-called differential relays, eachbeing wrapped with two equal but distinct helices. ()ne of these helicesis inserted in the main line,while the other is inserted in the wire Mof the artificial line, which branches from the main line at a point, L,between the reversing transmitter T and the adjacent relay. A rheostat,R, isinserted in the artificial line, in order that the resistance ofsaid artitical line may be made equal to the resistance of the mainline. A condenser, N, is inserted in a shunt wire, M, of the artificialline to compensate for static discharges of the main line, in amannerwell known. The helices of each relay are reversely connected to themain line and artificial line respectively, so that from point L thedivided currents will flow in opposite directions through said helicesand balance each other so long as an effective IIS current flows to themain line from station I; a

but the relays at each station are nevertheless normally charged, sincethe main-line current is stronger than either of the artificial-linecurrents, because normally battery M B at station I is joined to batteryM B at station II, so that both batteries contribute to the mainlinecurrent, while the artificial line at station I is charged by battery MB alone and the artificial line at station II by battery M B alone. Thisnormal main-line current has a direction or polarity opposite to thatrequired to operate the polar relays. The neutral relays are, on theother hand, adjusted above the tension of said normal mainline current,and will respond only when the unbalanced current, or either unbalancedportion thereof, is strengthened to the extent that it maybe by addingthe electromotive force of either or both batteries M B and M B,according as either one or both neutral relays are to be operated.

It will be observed that the route from line to earth at the respectivestations is never broken by the operation of the transmitters, so thatthe continuity of the circuit is constant. Under this arrangement thebatteries M B at the respective stations are normally joined and inline-circuit, and produce a main-line current exceeding in strength thecurrent on either artificial line; but said normal main-line current istoo weak to operate the neutral relays, and its polarity is the reverseof that required to operate the polarized relays. In telegraphing asignal or message from one station to the othersay from station I tostation IIby the non-reversing transmitter T the operation of theapparatus does not materially differ from that of the duplex shown inFig. 1 under like circumstances, the main-line current beingsuccessively increased and decreased, and neutral relay M Rat station IIbeing operated in consequence thereof, neutral relay M R at station Iremaining inactive because the increase in strength of the main-linecurrent being accompanied by a corresponding increase in strength of theartificial-line current at said station I; but the operation of theapparatus when a signal or message is telegraphed by the reversin gtransmitter T differs very materially from that of the duplex shown inFig. 1 under like circumstances. Thus, in operating thereversingtransmitter T at either station-say at sta tion l-battery M B at saidstation I is successively joined and opposed to battery M B at stationII, resulting in successive suspensions and re-establishments of themain-line current and reversals of the artificial-line current atstation I. The artificial-line current at station It remains unaffected;but the suspensions of the main-line current set it free, as it were, sothat having proper direction it will operate the polarized relay P R atstation II. The polarized relay P R at station I remains inactive duringthese suspensions of the main-line current because the reversal of theartificial-line current gives it a direction reverse of that required tooperate said polarized relay.

The continuity of the line-circuit of the duplexes (shown in Figs. 1 and2) is never interrupted by the operation of the transmitters, butremains constant, the same as in the quadruplex shown in Fig. 3.

It will be observed that in all cases the relays are entirely free oflocal complications that the operation of either in no instance affectsor modifies the effect of the line current on the other; that they are,in short, locally independent.

In all the examples of my invention each main-line relay governs anindependent local circuit, including a sounder. These local circuits andsounders are shown in Figs. 1 and 2, but are omitted from Fig. 3.

This patent is intended to cover only the particular subject-matterspecified in the ensuing claim. I disclaim here all other novel featureswhich I have endeavored to cover in my applications for patents filed,respectively, October 14, A. D. 1874, and May 11, A. D. 1876, andsubdivisions thereof other than this one.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- Thecombination,atone station,substantially as before set forth, of a singlemain-line and twolocally-independentmain-linerelays adaptedtoindependently andsimultaneouslyreceive each a separate and distinctsignal or message.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HENRY C. NICHOLSON.

Witnesses:

W. P. BIDDLE, JOHN E. JoNEs.

